Interview: Bowerbirds

If you haven't heard of Bowebirds then you're absolutely crazy! Their debut album Hymns For A Dark Horse (check out our review here) is just incredible so make sure you check it out!
Like the lucky people we are, we managed to get an interview with the awesome Beth and here's what went down!
Could you explain a little bit about the band and how you formed? You seemed to come out of nowhere even though your debut came out last year.Â
We formed as a band a couple years ago... (continued)

If you haven't heard of Bowebirds then you're absolutely crazy! Their debut album Hymns For A Dark Horse (check out our review here) is just incredible so make sure you check it out!
Like the lucky people we are, we managed to get an interview with the awesome Beth and here's what went down!
Could you explain a little bit about the band and how you formed? You seemed to come out of nowhere even though your debut came out last year.Â
We formed as a band a couple years ago.Â After the breakup of Phil and Mark's previous band, Ticonderoga, Phil started writing new songs that were more acoustic and folk-oriented, and I soon joined him on the accordion.Â We toured a little, but we were very DIY and weren't signed to a proper label until we signed to Dead Oceans, who released our album (which had been previously semi-released by our friends and then us, mostly locally in North Carolina) this last summer. We recorded the album in January 2007, but it has taken a while to actually make it into record stores, because we never "shopped it around" to labels, and we eventually realized we needed actual distribution.Â Dead Oceans has been amazing, and is making the album more widely available.Â
Going back to the album, what made you decide to re-release it?Â
Well, it was only in like seven record stores in the world, until Dead Oceans re-released it, and we thought it deserved a better chance than that.Â
What influences your sound? I recently saw the video for 'My Oldest Memory' and it felt like that sort of environment must contribute to your sound in some way! Please tell me if i'm wrong!Â
We started writing the songs that would become Bowerbirds' in the summer of 2006, when we were living in the wilderness of South Carolina, a half hour drive on a sand road from any other human beings.Â We lived in a cypress swamp with bears, alligators, wild turkeys and pigs, nighthawks, and all sorts of other wild plants and animals, and it was very clarifying and energizing to be surrounded by non-humans, and to feel so alive.Â We decided that summer that we couldn't live in the city very well after that - that we wanted to most of the time live out of town in somewhere where it was still pretty wild, but we wanted to be close to a city where there was a music scene and a lot of culture, so now we live an hour from Raleigh, NC, and half an hour from Chapel Hill.Â It's not quite as wild as the swamp, but there are still foxes, coyotes, frogs, and buzzards in abundance, among other things.Â
You recently came over to England and played a few shows, how do you feel it went? I was at the Bush Hall gig and it really was wonderful.Â
All of our European and UK shows have been pretty awesome.Â It's our first tour here, and we feel really honored that people know about us and are coming out to see us.Â Tonight we played Shepherd's Bush Empire with Bon Iver, and that was pretty incredible.Â
For me your album, even though it's a re-release, is probably going to end up in my end of your top ten. Who do you think will make up your top ten?Â
Thank you!Â Man, that's a hard question.Â The year is only half over!Â But for sure, we would have to include Bon Iver's "For Emma, Forever Ago," Bellafea's Cavalcade, and the Fleet Foxes album.Â But it takes us forever to actually hear new music, and we are still just finding out about our new favorite releases from last year.Â
What does the future hold for you?Â
We are about to record a new album this October, when we are home for a month between tours, about which we are overly excited.Â We are going to record it at a house at the beach, which is pretty ideal.Â After that we are going to tour with Calexico around the U.S., and then we are going to lay around on our backs and hopefully smoke a bunch of hash.Â Just kidding.Â Sort of.Â
If you could put together a fantasy festival, who would be the headliners?Â Um, us obviously.Â No, we would rather play early in the day, so we could relax and watch Neil Young, Fleet Foxes (just because we haven't seen them live yet and need to), Bjork, The National, De La Soul, Joanna Newsom, the Battles, Des Ark, The Rosebuds, and some drum and bass djs would actually headline, so we could dance.Â Leave us a comment below! Then check us out at our Myspace/Facebook/Our Forums!Click here to subscribe to us!